HT Correspondent
DIMAPUR, Aug 16: Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio on Friday said that the continuity in the dispensation at the Centre will prove beneficial to the early resolution of the Indo-Naga issue.
Delivering his Independent Day speech at Nagaland Civil Secretariat Plaza in Kohima, Rio reiterated that the government is committed to an early solution and that it would continue to engage with all stakeholders for it.
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He added that the political affairs committee, constituted with the entire Cabinet and elected members from those tribes who are not in it, had already held its first meeting on the issue.
He said, “through the forum of political consultative committees, joint consultations will be held with the civil society organisations and tribal hohos (bodies) to discuss on the basis of the already signed Framework Agreement on August 3, 2015, and the Agreed Position on November 17, 2017.”
Rio stated that, “Nagaland has made history by successfully conducting the urban local body elections with reservation for women for the very first time with 37% women representation, greater than the 33% mandated by the law”.
Citing it as an example of unity, Rio said, “there is nothing one cannot achieve as a state and hoped to carry forward this spirit and work together to overcome all obstacles”.
Saying that the government was committed to the all-round development, Rio said the eastern region of the state requires more handholding than the other parts.
He stressed that it was important to bridge both physical and human capital gaps that exist and added that the government has an open-door policy to resolve the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation issue.
During his address, Rio also highlighted various developmental initiatives taken by the state government in various sectors.
On the law and order situation in the state, Rio said the state government has taken steps to improve forensic capabilities to effectively deal with crimes and the criminals and to modernise the police force. He said the Nagaland police have commissioned a gas chromatography mass spectrometry instrument at Forensic Science Laboratory and acquired a state-of-the-art spectral camera that can capture fingerprints even on porous surfaces.
He lauded the district administration and police for ensuring healthy atmosphere in the state.
